Bye Biphobia!

Leeds Beckett University held their first Campus Pride at the beginning of LGBT History Month this year. Running a stall there for Leeds Bi Group, it was great to see a mix of student societies plus the Council, Mesmac and others. I had a great day chatting to students, staff and visitors about bisexuality and why events like this are so important, as well as swiping a number of Trans Society’s pronoun badges!

As well as promoting LGBTQ* inclusivity, the Leeds Beckett Student Union also used this platform to launch their Bye Biphobia! campaign. There was a heavy bi contingent with BiCon, Leeds Bi Group and the Bye Biphobia! stall in a row near the Leslie Silver building entrance on City Campus. The student stall was giving out free pink, purple and blue ribbons to passers-by imploring them to “take a stand against biphobia on campus”. They also gave out a large number of flyers with information about biphobia and the upcoming campaign.

However, their fight against biphobia does not end there! We met with some of the Student Unions reps from the student LGBTQ* Society to discuss the next steps for the campaign. As well as developing a survey for students to collate experiences of biphobia, they are also planning some focus groups in the future on the same theme.

It’s wonderful to see a prominent university taking biphobia seriously as well as the wider LGBT+ issues. Leeds Beckett have placed within Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers for the past three years, showing a dedication to diversity and inclusivity.

Emily

This article is also published on Leed’s LGBT+ blog Freedom Quarter www.freedomquarter.com